The Muhlenberg wrestling team returned to the mats after a month-long
layoff and finished sixth at the Williams Invitational.

The seven-team tournament included three squads ranked in the top 30 in
Division III and a fourth  Simpson  that probably should be
after winning handily. Five of the seven schools have wrestlers ranked in
the top eight in their weight classes.

The Mules ranked wrestler, junior Matt Loesch, competed for
the first time since achieving the top ranking at 197. He won his
first two bouts on pins, but was pinned in the semifinals for his
first loss of the season. Loesch rebounded to capture two bouts in the
consolation bracket to claim third place.

Freshman Billy Hall was the only Mule to advance to the
championship final, scoring two pins at 133 to improve his team-leading
total to eight. He dropped a 6-5 decision to a Norwich wrestler in the
final.

Senior 157-pounder Dale Mills recorded his 80th career win
and advanced to the semifinals before dropping out.

Last year, the Muhlenberg womens basketball went into winter break
with a 7-1 record, but lost its first game back and never regained its
mojo, finishing with only 11 wins.

The Mules made sure 2006 would not be a repeat of 2005, getting the new

Although she was the only one of the Mules 14 players not to score,
sophomore Michelle Feldman had three assists and two blocked shots.

year off to a good start with an 82-46 win at Haverford.

Teams often show rust, especially offensively, when they return to action
after a long break, but Muhlenberg (9-1, 4-1), playing for the first time
in three weeks, won its fifth straight with its best offensive showing of
the season. The Mules reached season highs in points and shooting (50.0
percent) and even shot at a higher percentage in the second half despite
playing with a big lead.

Muhlenbergs nationally ranked defense picked up right where it left
off, holding a team under 55 points for the seventh time in 10 games and
collecting 20 more rebounds than the Fords (2-11, 0-6), who did not help
their cause by missing 20 of 27 free throws.

The Mules led only 8-6 after five minutes, but outscored Haverford 16-4
over the next 5:30 to open up a 14-point lead. Their cushion ballooned to
22 before halftime and never went below 17 in the second half.

Senior Stephanie Coluccini led a balanced attack with a season-high
15 points, shooting 4-for-4 from the field and 7-for-8 from the line.
Senior Michelle Hirst (nine) and junior Emily Wright (eight)
also achieved season highs in points, while senior Sam Tager scored
her first four points of the season.

Muhlenberg has defeated Haverford 27 straight times dating back to the
1992-93 season.